High quantum yield nitrogen and boron co-doped carbon dots for sensing Ag, biological imaging and fluorescent inks.

Herein, bright blue-green fluorescent nitrogen and boron co-doped carbon dots (N, B-CDs) with a quantum yield (QY) up to 33.04% were synthesized hydrothermal treatment from ammonium citrate tribasic and 3-aminophenylboronic acid. The synthesized N, B-CDs showed outstanding water solubility. According to the principle of the static quenching effect (SQE), the synthesized N, B-CDs were utilized as an efficient sensor for sensing Ag. The linear range and limit of detection (LOD) of the sensor for Ag are 0.99-26.04 μM and 9.03 nM (3/). The proposed method was successfully adopted to detect Ag in environmental water, which is of great significance to environmental detection. Furthermore, due to the excellent fluorescence performance, the N, B-CDs were found to be an effective tool for biological imaging and as a fluorescent ink, which widens the horizons for the multifunctional applications of N, B-CDs.